Research Projects
Aluminium
Novel extrusion method to produce wide metal components
The traditional method to produce wide aluminium components is rolling, which is costly due to the multiple rolling passes and intermediate heating. On the other hand, conventional extrusion methods can only produce component with low width due to the high requirement of extrusion force. In this study, multi-cylinder extrusion method is developed to extrude high width-to-thickness ratio hollow profile. The trial 3-cylinder extrusion die tools have been designed and manufactured, and the extrusion experiments of AA1060 and AA6063 materials have been conducted. The proposed extrusion technique showed a dramatic reduction of extrusion force compared with the conventional extrusion method, and the tensile results of extrudates showed strengthened mechanical properties when compared to the original billets.